Meeple Nation Board Game Podcast · Meeple Nation

MN 565 February 2025 News

·1 hr 8 min·6 clips

How did a cheese-making game with no personal appeal become a surprise favorite at the convention?

Episode 565 opens with February 2025 news. The setup feels like Meeple Nation in its comfort zone: drinks, dice, GameToppers, Patreon, and an open seat at the game table before the hosts get into the board gaming world. Douglas Stewart, Nathan Howard, and Andy Holliday keep things loose through the introductions, then follow the conversation into the kind of table memory that makes the hobby stick. One table really worked. Someone taught the game well, brought the group in, and helped make it fun for the host's son and everyone else playing. That matters. The news frame turns into something warmer than headlines, more about good people, shared tables, and chasing the next session. SaltCon is close by in the conversation. The hosts talk about wanting to reconnect there, and the Mistborn deck building game still feels unfinished. Mistborn becomes the center of gravity. One host says the first book did not fully land for him, but the game was good enough to make him think about returning to the novels. John DeClaire's name matters here. Since the hosts describe him as strong at deck building, his involvement raised interest, even with doubts attached. The worry is narrow and honest. Competitive deck builders where players grind down each other's health pools can feel aggressive before the first turn. The targeting system seems to ease that concern. In the excerpt, the design softens the initial skepticism enough that it turns into real enthusiasm. This is more table report than formal review: a few caveats, some lived experience, and the fact that they want another shot at the game. The close comes back to the usual Meeple Nation orbit, with Patreon, email, the website, the editors, and Brain Detergent's music keeping it in community mode instead of promo mode.

As heard by us

A friendly board-game news roundtable that spends real time on why Mistborn clicked.

Meeple Nation's February 2025 news episode opens with the show's familiar welcome and sponsor chatter before settling into board-game talk, and the strongest stretch lands on the Mistborn deck-building game.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

If you want a board-game news chat that settles into the game table and lingers on Mistborn's deck-building combat, start here.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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